Row over first-time buyer help as parties trade blows

Labour and the Conservatives have accused each other of failing to match promises on housing, in what has become a key battleground in the election campaign.

The Conservatives said they were offering a better deal on stamp duty, by permanently abolishing the levy for first-time buyers purchasing properties up to £425,000.

Meanwhile, Labour said its more ambitious plans for energy efficiency in rental homes would protect tenants from higher energy bills.

Many people who have got in touch with the BBC via Your Voice, Your Vote said that housing was the most important issue for them during this election.

The threshold at which first-time buyers start paying stamp duty was temporarily raised from £300,000 to £425,000 until April next year.

The Conservatives have pledged to keep it at that level permanently and claim that by not matching their plan, first-time buyers under Labour would face a tax bill of up to £11,250.

Housing Secretary Michael Gove, who is not standing for re-election, said the Conservatives had a "clear plan" to help people get on to the housing ladder, and accused Labour of "hammering hundreds of thousands of first-time buyers with a massive stamp duty increase from next April".

Labour have said they would keep the current stamp duty exemption for first-time buyers, but speaking on Thursday leader Sir Keir Starmer would not commit to extending it as proposed by the Conservative manifesto.

"In the Budget the government set out clearly its plan, that was costed, in relation to stamp duty and we will hold to that because it's fully costed," Sir Keir said.

He said the Conservatives' proposal on stamp duty was "another example" of an unfunded commitment, which he would not follow.

Analysts point out that stamp duty is primarily paid by those buying larger homes, or in more expensive areas. Potential savings would not benefit everyone, as some would not need to pay it anyway.

According to the Office for National Statistics, the average house price for first-time buyers in Britain in April 2024 was £236,000, which would not be subject to any stamp duty.